Tulips...

I don't know why I chose a day to take my boys to see the tulips that everyone else on the planet chose as well. Traffic was icky, the weather was gorgeous and the wait in line was long. No child likes to wait in line, right? Once inside, our boys ran free. David was excited by all the color and really loved the tulips. He had a favorite he kept coming back to... "Zurel".

I told the name of the tulip once, and he remembered it the rest of the day.

I took my Dad along for the ride, I think everything was a bit much for him. Dad loves his grand boys, but he has a lot of health issues and finds it difficult to walk for too long as he is an amputee with a prosthesis. His youngest Grandson hung of his hand in line and ran away from him inside, Dad couldn't keep up. We wore him out in 15 minutes...but he is 70 years old...he did pretty good. I'm surprised he didn't conk out in the van on the way home!

They ran to everything, everywhere and left us in the dust.

We packed the entire kitchen to make sure we had all the food I needed to keep us happy on our trip. I get teased a lot because I'm a bit of a girl scout in that sense. I packed food, extra clothes and toys for entertainment...silly me.

David did well considering the amount of people that were there. I had to watch him because he would just fly in front of people taking pictures of the tulips, he was just so excited by all the colors and shapes he didn't notice anything (or anyone) else.

He would have sat here all day if we let him.

 Leaving posed to be an issue, David really didn't want to leave. It helped that his favorite flower was planted at the exit...daffodils. 

They really do make him smile... he loves daffodils!

All in all, we had a good day, got home way later than anticipated and got a late nap. It was worth it to see the boys enjoy the sunshine and fresh air and flowers.

Yeah Spring!

Tickles...

I love to tickle my boys! I don't know if I shared this...but David LOVES to be tickled. So, when he was struggling and not doing as well as his younger brother in memorizing scriptures...what did I do? I reached into my arsenal of resources and pulled out TICKLES! Wow- this works so amazing for David. Again, we know how blessed we are that David doesn't mind touch, he snuggles with us and loves to be tickled, hugged and loved on (thank you Jesus).
The trick: Introducing a new scripture is a bit difficult, David likes consistency and is not too fond of change (not too many children with autism enjoy change). So... we work on the scripture in increments (natural breaks in rhythm help best) and he gets tickles as he recites with Momma. Then, of course, he wants more. So we get a lot of practice in. After awhile, I withhold tickles until he says 2 increments on his own and so on. Tickles are his incentive and his reward. Once he knows a scripture, he only gets tickles if he says it correctly, then he is rewarded with lots of tickles and praise from Momma (or Daddy). It's pretty awesome when your child wants to say all the scriptures they know because they want more tickles...huh?

Try this sometime with your little ones...I'd love to know if it works for you!

At a loss...

Well, David has been off vitamins and supplements for almost 2 weeks, we tried this because of behavior issues at school. We've seen an improvement in overall behavior here at home, but not at school. I have a feeling he is pushing and testing boundaries because he won't be disciplined at school. This is making it so difficult for him to move forward to kindergarten, he won't do his independent work or listen to his teacher or occupational therapist.

He is basically ready to move up in school and that means more changes coming down the pike but we have to get David to somehow understand how important this learning and growing is for him.

I'm overwhelmed and I can only imagine he is too. New changes will be even more so.

We have to learn and figure this out together.

How can we communicate to David that he needs to cooperate and do his work so that he can move up in school to learn bigger and better things?

Pray for wisdom, that's what we can do. Then out of that will come action...eventually, hopefully.

Until then, I'll be still.

Changes...

It's been awhile since my last post... Morning sickness has ruled the roost for this last few months. I've taken this time to observe David. He is doing well drinking his juice and getting his vitamins...he's essentially been healthy since we started him on the new regimen at the beginning of January. One bout of green nose goblins, that cleared up with saline and humidifier usage :::phew:::

I've been getting emails from David's teacher, the class grew a bit this year and David seems to be having difficulty. I am at a loss as to what to do. David basically runs from the teacher and para-ed help all the time now. He isn't listening. He says "You're talking from your mouth" and "Run teacher, run!" this is happening anytime they interact with him and it's kind of taking it's toll. It's gotten worse this last few weeks and it wasn't behavior we were seeing at home, so I wasn't sure how to react. Well, it's starting now at home. I'm not sure, but I think he is testing boundaries- he doesn't get too far here at home. Momma and Daddy stick to their guns and it's tiring sometimes. I'm sure the teachers are trying, but they have 11 other students to attend to as well.

I'm going to take a chance and bring him to the Dr. and have her check his ears. The last time his behavior went "wonky" he had an ear infection... he wasn't fussy or anything... he had it for weeks and it wasn't clearing up.

We have David's conference this week, I don't know what to expect at this time. I was thinking he might get to move up to Kindergarten, but now I'm not so sure. Given his tendency to run and not listen to the teachers lately. Well, first things first... check the ears. Then we'll go from there.

I've noticed new behaviors emerging in David as well. He likes to shake his head a lot while focusing on something (giving him a euphoric/dizzy) feeling, then he crashes on his bed. He's lining up cars more (in rows) not just looking at the wheels (which he still does), he's just added to the attention for detail in how they are parked. His knowledge is growing tremendously, he never ceases to amaze me with what he has retained and recites at a moments notice. He's memorizing books. He loves "Ten Apples Up On Top" by Dr. Seuss. He recites it verbatim, no matter what book he is looking at.

Oh. I almost forgot! David got to have a really special day with Daddy at the beginning of this month. Troy found out that the Imagination Movers were coming to Seattle (to the SONY store) and he took David to meet them. Once they were inside the store and in line, Troy pointed to them and asked David "Who do you see?", David immediately wanted to sit down, right there in line. Boy, he was seriously star struck. All of the Movers are dad's and they were amazing. Troy explained (when it was their turn) that David had autism and the way he was acting was completely unexpected. They were gracious and friendly. Scott (left on floor with goggles) said Thanks to Troy for taking the time to bring David out. Pretty cool.  It was a fun time and here are some pics:

At the camera

What's over there?

In between getting there and meeting the Movers, they had to make a potty stop. They went to a local grocery store and David immediately gravitated toward the flowers. He loves flowers! Since he was a younger toddler, Grandma would bring over flower books (Birds & Blooms, Gardening Made Easy) and they were for me to peruse...but David loved them. He remembers the names of the flowers we tell him: Daylily, Zinia, Primrose, Daffodil (his favorite) Hyacinth...he remembers just about every one of them! He may be the next Ed Hume!

Saying "Hi" to the cyclamin and primroses.

Feeling Blessed...

Momma was able to go away successfully this weekend and came home to happy and healthy boys. Daddy still had all his hair left and the house hadn't burnt down. To top it all off our littlest man, Gregory decided he wanted to sit on the potty and has been successful two times today.

We (and I mean me) took awhile to get to a place where we would even think about trying to have another child. When we got David's diagnosis it felt like that was it, and we already had an 8 month old when we learned of David's developmental delay, it felt so hard to do and pretty overwhelming. Worrying that Gregory could possibly show signs of autism was scary...thinking back and remembering David, thinking about signs we didn't act on and looking for them to show up in Gregory. Rocking in the crib or on the couch. Little to no eye contact. Socially and emotionally quiet.

Gregory- 1 1/2 months

So far, so good. Gregory's almost three (in August) and his motor skills are above David's, he is extremely outgoing and he gets excited about the things he does and wants to show us, this is something David hasn't done. It has been nice to see such a difference in our two boys and it has also brought a sense of relief. We thank God on a daily basis for our boys. We have learned so much from David, I know our patience is much more bountiful than it was. We want to know and understand how to help them learn and grow to the best of their ability. David's teachers mentioned they wish all parents were as active in their child's education.

Brothers...

We are seeing great strides in David since we started with his all natural treatment. The gluten free, casein free diet was first and by itself, we didn't notice much change...maybe just less hyper. Once we started adding in the vitamins and supplements, things just starting happening, changing and taking shape- right before our eyes he was speaking a bit more and we were seeing more eye contact. What is so great is that the teachers and therapists knew how to bring him out of his shell even more with the visual PECS schedule and he took off again! Growing, learning and becoming even easier to work with.  I just can't wait to see the NutrEval result in about 4-5 months, so I can share our continued proof and success in natural treatment!

David is potty trained and doing really well! Gregory has caught on (because he adores David and wants to do whatever he does) and I love that. On top of that...God has blessed us once again and we are expecting another baby... we just can't wait to introduce him or her to two wonderful brothers!

February...

Here we are mid-February. Things are going well on the potty training front. David’s school sent home his back-up diapers…Woohoo! It’s exciting that we are finally over a large speed bump that was causing me stress, unbeknownst to me. I didn’t realize how much I wanted David to be potty trained until we are finally there. What a weight has been lifted…kinda.

We seem to have gained a new skill though, and it’s not a good one. Poo Painting, anyone? Oh yes, you heard me right. I know, yucky. Huh? Some dear friends at our church told our community group horror stories about their twin girls and their “artwork” and now that nightmare has become our reality. None too excited about standing guard outside David’s room “timing” his naptime diaper change. He hasn’t gone #2 for us in the potty yet, it occurs before he goes to sleep for nap in the afternoon diaper. If we don’t catch it soon enough… we get to clean the walls. :::SIGH:::

Needless to say, a lot of vigorous hand washing has been occurring. David’s hands now seem to have Eczema. Dr. said plain old Vaseline after hand washing is the best thing, and it works. We use a great kid friendly soap from Melaleuca that we just love. 

It’s smells yummy and it comes out foamy and easy to rinse. The pump is oversized for little hands.

Still no luck trying new foods for David, it’s hard when you see him getting tired of the same old same old, but you can’t seem to introduce something new.

Some encouraging things I’ve noticed lately though, since we started treating David: He’s gone from 2-3 word sentences to 5-6 or sometimes up to 8 words! He’s taken off with wanting to learn to read. Starting him on BOB books for beginning readers. He’s enjoying those. Much better eye contact in general. We’ve been able to have a bit more conversation with David too, that’s been really nice. Treating naturally takes a bit more time, but I feel good about his progress and I know his body is getting exactly what it needs to recover itself. 

Last weekend, David broke our indoor trampoline (accidentally). We've ordered the part, but he was pretty sad. 

Remembering when he could jump...

This weekend, Mommy gets to go away for some much needed relaxation time. The women of our church are going on a retreat. Daddy will be home all weekend with the boys. I've prayed for a calm household while I'm gone and that potty training continues on the right track. We'll see how it goes.

Is it January already?

So, here we are in 2011. New Years was a relaxing day, no real plans. I had a paid day off and we all stayed close to home. I continued to prep for my visit with the Dr. on the 3^rd. Making sure I had all my research printed and the email I sent a few days before as well so I could remember what I was going to talk with her about.


Follow up Dr. visit and how I do my research.

1/3/2011- I had 40 minutes of the doctor's time to figure out the next stage of David’s treatment. On my agenda were:

• Review Genova Diagnostics report together and discuss concerns. My #1 was the mercury chelation then amino acids. I brought a pile of one’s I found on the internet with Neocate being on the top of the pile- since it was made for children 
• Running another NutrEval in 5-6 months, this time with all the vitamins and supplements on board to see the difference in how we are helping his body.

At the appointment we dove right in, starting with the Excel spreadsheet I made showing David’s current regimen and checking it against what was suggested. We looked at the numbers on the report that were either too high or too low and those were our focus points. Everything recommended on the report lined up with what we were seeing…how cool is that?

David had very high DHPPA (Dihydroxyphenylpropionic Acid) (say that 10x fast) as well as high Citric Acid, Cis-Aconitic Acid, Isocitric Acid, a-Ketoglutaic Acid (AKKA) and Malic Acid…these are all Citric Acid Cycle Metabolites. This is the Krebs Cycle (fun link to show you how it works) or Citric Acid cycle used for metabolizing nutrients and storing them for later use. When I researched on my own before going to this appointment, I broke it down into bite size pieces. I went to www.ask.com and typed in “What is DHPPA?” and learned it’s tied to digestion and bacterial growth in the gut (Great Plains Laboratory- pioneer in treating autism is the first link to pop up). We have good and bad bacteria…in this case the bad bacteria (Chlostridia) are ruling my son’s gut. 

• The Question…how do we treat it naturally? 
• The Answer… Grape Seed Extract and/or Uva Ursi are both successful in treating this bacteria. I addressed this with David's doctor, which you should always do before starting any kind of regimen, and we started with 25mg and worked up to 100mg. 

I took each additional item on the report that was elevated or lacking and researched them one by one. With that info I talked to the Dr. about how we should proceed. She spent a whole hour with me and I was only slotted for 40 minutes, very gracious for a doctor!

The doctor and I also talked about the info I found about naturally removing the mercury from David’s body- she approved and thought we should give it a try. We also upped his antioxidants to help his body recover as he was in oxidative stress. This is linked to a number of serious diseases, such as: Parkinson’s and Alzheimers.

When I left I felt excited about this next step in David’s treatment. We started everything right away in his evening juice and we also had switched up his probiotic- we wanted to “round it out” a bit- so we are now trying Kids MegaFlora as it has 14 probiotic strains as opposed to just the one in Culturelle. Since the Chlostridia got out of hand we figured more strains of good bacteria along with the grape seed extract should rid his gut of that bad bacteria. We’ll confirm in about 5 more months. I’ll be sure to keep you posted.


     ~A side note about this...I use a HSA account, and normally vitamins and supplements are not covered. I checked with the HSA company and they stated if his Dr. provides a letter stating they are medically necessary, they will be covered. This is a big thing, because this stuff can add up. 

Administering supplements.

David's evening juice is packed with 13 vitamins and supplements! Luckily, he loves tart stuff like lemon and vinegar, the juice doesn’t taste bad at all, it has a nice tart kick to the aftertaste that he likes. It also tastes a little green (from the cilantro/chlorella) but David will drink my green smoothies when I make them and has no complaints, so there you go. 

• If your child doesn't like tartness, you may have to go with 1/2 doses of the anti-oxidants to cut it down a bit and just do 2 servings of juice. We serve ours in all natural fruit juice to help mask the flavors and sweeten it up a bit. We also change up the juice every once in awhile to keep it new and interesting.

The barrage of vitamins & supplements for David's evening juice.

January was a great month for us. We have David on his new regimen and he drinks his AM milk and his PM juice with no issues (thank God). The juice does give him a bit of energy though…so as soon as he is up from nap I give it to him. I stay on him until it’s gone, the farther from bedtime the better.


Adventures in potty training!

1/15/2011- This was a Saturday, I have weekends off and spend them entirely with the boys. I thought, I’m going to try potty training David again. I kept it low key, no pressure and relaxed (mostly my attitude). We were totally successful that weekend. I was so excited for David and he knew it. I gave him fruit snacks and he wore big boy pants all day…we went every hour or so, I used the microwave timer to remind me.

Week of 1/17/2011- Monday (holiday- David off from school). He went in the AM for our nanny and that was very exciting as well. He had a few accidents too. We just encouraged him to go in the potty next time. He would ask to go but it would be too late. He was totally getting the hang of it though! We lost it again though that weekend, my Godkids were over and weren’t able to keep up, so he wore a diaper most of the time.

Week of 1/24/2011- We continued our attempt at getting David on the potty 1^st thing in the AM, hopefully getting him to go before school.  If he did, he got to wear bog boy pants and we sent change of clothes in his back pack. He was always successful at home for me- we’d figured out his schedule. His back pack always had his set of clothes wrapped in a plastic bag for us…he wasn’t getting it at school just yet.

Week of 1/31/2011- David was well on his way to having a potty schedule down at home, now we just needed it to follow at school. He had his first success at school today and the teachers gave him GFCF chocolate chips as a reward, he loved that! I immediately adopted that idea at home, they are fairly cheap and when I only give him two, they last a LONG time! What a great idea and incentive, we gotta do what works…right?

More to come in …February!